The kid, the thief, and the damsel in distress
by ADemonNamedGrace
Summary: Red X has been chasing Robin's affections for months, but Boy Wonder is stubborn. Maybe the repeated kidnappings of a teenaged girl will push them together.
1. Chapter 1

The building exploded beautifully. Nice, resounding noise, excellent flames, and bricks raining down like candy out of a burst piñata. The girl was screaming, but Red ignored her and looked around quickly.

"Everyone okay?" Robin yelled over the din of panicking pedestrians. The Titans chorused that they were fine, and the girl stuttered, "I t-t-think so! Oh wow. That was so COOL!" Red X looked at her. "Cool?"

"Uh, sorry. I'll be quiet." She'd been kidnapped by the H.I.V.E. FIVE about a week earlier, and somehow, Red X got roped into helping rescue her. "Cori!" A tall, dark boy and a violet haired African American girl pushed through the crowd. "Hi guys!" She jogged over to them, trailing ash from her clothing. "X." The thief turned to find Robin watching him.

"Thanks. She'd still be in there without your help."

"Don't mention it, kid. Seriously. Don't tell anyone." Robin smiled, and X mentally kicked himself. 'Stop thinking he's cute, stop thinking he's cute, stop thinking he's c-'

"Guys?" Robin looked over X's shoulder and X turned again to find the girl had wandered back over. "Thank you!" She suddenly threw her arms around X and gave him a quick hug. She backed off, stepped around him, and repeated the process with Robin. She waved to the other Titans. "I'd totally be dead right now!" she chirped, before blushing and running off again.

Red X completely dumbfounded. "Well. That was weird." He commented.

"We did just save her life. They tend to be pretty happy after that. So, hugs could be expected." Robin replied. X made a face under his mask. "So, what did the HIVE losers want with her anyway?" Robin blew out a sigh. "No idea." He clenched his fists. "But they'll pay for it."

"I love it when you get serious." Robin shot X a scathing look.

"Thanks for your help. Now get out of my sight." He turned and started back towards his group, who had already rounded up the HIVE members. "Kid, hang on a sec." Robin looked back. "My offer's still open." X reminded him. Robin stared at him. "I've got a boyfriend." He said finally, before turning on his heel and returning to his team. Now X balled up a fist. 'Perfect. Just. FUCKING. Perfect.'

When Speedy dumped Boy Wonder, the news was everywhere by the following afternoon. See-More was a notorious gossip, and Robin had the great misfortune to receive the break up call while interrogating the HIVE members about the girl's kidnapping. Rumor had it Robin had actually screamed 'You son of a bitch! You cheating liar!', before hurling the phone out a window. No one saw Robin for a full week after that. When he came back, several villains ended up with broken bones and missing teeth. Robin was in no mood for their shit that month. Red X had finally had enough and headed over there.

It was easy to get in, as always. Despite it being three am, Robin was still up. "Kid?" Boy Wonder, sitting hunched over his desk, jumped. "X! What are you-"

"Save it. What the hell is wrong with you lately?" Robin's surprise faded and he scowled. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about the fact that you've damn near killed a few people this month!" Robin was quiet for a second. "I've been in a bad mood." He said shortly, before turning back to what he'd been doing. Red X sighed. "You're heartbroken." Robin whipped back around. "Leave. Me. Alone." He hissed through gritted teeth. Red X stepped closer. "Speedy was a fucking jerk."

"Get out!"

"Doesn't have any idea what he threw away-" Robin was on his feet and lunging at X. Red X side stepped and grabbed one of Robin's wrists, before twisting his arm behind his back. "Calm the hell down." He said mildly. Robin snarled in response. Red X wrapped his other arm around Robin's waist and pulled him close. "I hate you!" Robin snapped. "No, you don't." Robin struggled for a few seconds, before going limp. "Will you just let me go and get out of my house?" Robin asked tiredly. X spun Robin around in his arms so they were chest to chest. He released Robin's arm and raised his hand to his own face. "Offer still stands, kid." He removed his mask. Robin gawked at him. Red X shifted in place, suddenly uncomfortable. Robin reached up and lightly touched the side of X's face, stunned. "Whoa." Was all he managed. Red X had chin length, curly black hair, and bi-colored eyes. One brown, one blue. X smirked. "So. Bed?" Robin seemed to snap back to reality. "I am NOT sleeping with you!" X groaned in exasperation. "But we both want to!"

"What makes you think I want to?" In response, X pulled Robin even closer. "Body doesn't lie, kid." He said, mouth against Robin's ear. Robin's eyes fluttered. X nipped his ear lobe, and Robin didn't protest. "It wouldn't mean a damn thing." Robin cautioned him, sliding his arms around X's neck. X 'mmhmm-ed' against Robin's throat, not really listening. "Take off your clothes." The thief added.

"X, did you hear me?"

"Yeah, yeah, I heard you. Won't mean anything, can't change anything, whatever. That's what I assumed in the first place. Now seriously-" Robin started removing X's suit and X pulled off Robin's uniform. Red X spun him and slammed him unto the bed, and Robin turned his brain off for a while.

Robin woke late the next morning, muscles sore and tangled in his sheets. "What the hell happ-" It flooded back to him. Red X's hands, his mouth, his body…Robin sat bolt upright and looked around. X was long gone. Robin relaxed slightly. It was a one-time thing, just like they'd agreed. Robin glanced down at himself. He was covered in hickeys. He flushed scarlet as he recalled Red X's words the previous night. "Damn kid. You taste amazing." He lapped at Robin's skin, just above his navel. Robin gasped, hands tangled in the thief's soft hair. "Stop..teasing!" he gasped, moaning as X's tongue trailed lower. "Say my name." He coaxed, hands stroking Robin's thighs. "No!"

"Say it, or I'll stop."

"X. X. X!"

"Good boy." Red X purred, before his lips-

"Gha!" Robin shook his head violently, trying to rid himself of the memory. Last night had been amazing. He could've guessed Red X would be good with his hands, but not that good. Robin blushed again.

Xavier turned in front of the mirror, admiring the markings that Robin had left on him. A couple good bite marks on his neck, several dark bruises from where Robin's fingers had dug into his hips, and bright red scratches decorated his back. "Never knew ya liked it rough, kid." Xavier smirked. It had been more than rough; it had been boarder line violent. Lots of cursing, too. It had been a pretty interesting fight when the time came to decide who was on top. "Let's get one thing straight. I'm in charge." Robin said flatly, glaring up at X. "Doesn't look that way." X commented. He was currently straddling Robin and had the hero's wrists pinned down. God damn, Robin looked good like that. Robin snarled. X grinned. "I think I can persuade you to enjoy this anyway." He gave Robin a long, deep kiss on the mouth. Robin responded, opening his mouth and kissing back. X lingered for a moment, enjoying the taste of his rival, before trailing more kisses down Robin's jaw, throat, and abdomen. "Damn kid. You taste amazing."

Xavier smiled to himself. Oh yeah. Robin had definitely enjoyed it.


	2. Chapter 2

"All I'm saying is, we both had fun, so why not do it again?"

"Because, X."

"That's not a reason!"

"Will you leave me alone?"

"I can't." Robin rounded on him. "What do you mean, you can't?" Red X crossed his arms and leaned back against the shadowed wall. The only light in the room was given off by an ancient lamp on a dusty table. "Because we're locked in here together?" Robin scowled at him. "Well, leave me alone about sex. We aren't having it again." Red X rolled his eyes. Robin went back to whatever he was doing by the window. The completely bricked up window. "So, I guess that girl's even more important than you thought, huh?" X commented. The girl from two months ago, Cori, had gone missing again. The Titans had traced her to a crumbling manor out in the countryside. One of the girl's family members had paid X an eye-popping amount to help them out in retrieving her. Right now, he was regretting his greed. Robin was silent for a second. "I still have no idea what they want with her. First the Hive Five, now Killer Moth. It doesn't make any sense." X had to agree. She was a geeky, good natured high schooler with barely enough brains to fill an egg cup and exactly zero superpowers. Footsteps thudded outside the chained and bolted door. Robin's head jerked up and he abandoned the device he was fiddling with to drop into a defensive stance. Red X remained against the wall. What was the point?

The door swung open, and Kitten stuck her head in. "You?" Robin yelped. Kitten grinned. "Hiiiiiiiii Robby!" Red X snickered. Robin shot him a warning look before focusing on Kitten. "What does your dad want with Cori?" He demanded. Kitten shrugged. "No idea. Something about 'evening his odds', whatever that means. Anyway, he told me to come warn you two not to try anything, or else."

"Or else what?" Red X asked, amused.

"Just or else okay! GOD." Kitten slammed the door and re-locked it. "I hate her." Robin grumbled. X snickered again. "Calm down. I'm sure your cheer squad will be here any minute to come get us out." The other four Titans had split up to hunt for Cori. "If she's hurt, her friends are going to kill me." X muttered. "Which reminds me, why are you here?" Robin asked. "I was hired to get her back. Obviously, no one trusts you idiots to find her." Robin arched an eyebrow. "Rescuing a kidnapped girl? Seems pretty hero-like, X."

"I was hired. As in, was paid. Seems pretty me-like." Robin smiled slightly. "What's so funny?"

"You." They were startled by a slight noise from a far corner of the room. "Ouch! Who leaves a roller skate there?" Robin blinked. "Cori?" The girl stepped out of the shadows into the dull circle of light. "Hi guys." Her face was bright red and she staring at the floor. "How did you-Where did you come from?" Robin demanded. Cori stammered. "I-I-I-, well, air vent-" Red X cut her off. "It's okay doll. Know how to get out of here?" Cori nodded. "There's a secret passage." Silence from them both. "There's a what?" Robin asked, exasperation clear in his voice. Cori looked up at them, wide eyed. "What?" Robin asked. "You. You guys, had sex?" Yet another silence stretched between the three. "Cori. How long have you been in here?" Robin asked through gritted teeth. "I was stuck in the wall! And that's not the point!" Red X stepped closer to her. "Listen doll. You can NOT tell ANYONE what you heard, got it?"

"It's not like anyone would believe me anyway!"

"Getting back to the secret passage?" Robin interjected. Cori nodded. "Follow the leader." She chirped, before striding back into the shadows. There was indeed a secret passage in the wall. The door leading into that particular room had no knob on the inside, which was how Cori got trapped. "How did you find this?" X asked, clambering down the splintering ladder towards the ground floor. "Tripped and knocked into a bookcase. Then the door opened. I'm just lucky like that." They found Raven and Starfire locked in a storage room and then discovered Beast Boy and Cyborg in the cellar. With team back together, it was fairly easy to get out of decaying manor. They called in local law enforcement, hauled Killer Moth off to jail, took Cori home, Red X got paid, and it was all good. Except for the tiny detail of Cori harboring a secret that could very easily ruin two lives.

There was nothing Red X enjoyed more the swiping some of Robin's stuff and hiding it around the city. In the dead of night, he slipped through the doorway into Robin's room. "Boy wonder sound asleep? Check." He crossed to Robin's desk and picked through the assortment of weapons and miscellanies items left there. "Hmm. Nice work, kid." He pocketed a prototype new bird-a-rang. "Nice choice." A silky voice commented. Red X jumped about a foot in the air. "Fuckity fucking fuck!" He turned and stared into the far corner of the room, right beside Robin's bed. The overhead light snapped on, and X dropped everything he was holding. Slade was leaning against the wall, arms crossed, watching Robin. "Okay, what the hell are you doing in here?" Red X demanded, suspicion and anger rising in his chest. "I could ask you the same thing." Slade replied, never looking away from Robin, who hadn't so much as stirred. "I'm taking his stuff. It's sort of what I do. Why are you doing something I'm fairly certain is way more illegal?" Slade glanced at X. "Know thy enemy." Red X's temper started to flare. "You are watching him sleep, you twisted fuck! What the hell else do you watch him do?" X would have wondered why Robin hadn't woken up if he was less pissed off. Slade cast him another look. "You, occasionally." It took X a second to put that together in his head. "You. Saw. That." He gritted his teeth. "That was one time. Once." He stepped closer. "Don't let me catch you here in again." The moment he said it, he realized what a completely idiot he was. Slade took his attention completely off of Robin, which was good, but now he was focused Red X, which was bad. Slade moved away from the wall and stepped towards to X. "Oh? What will you do if you do catch me in here again?" Slade asked, voice deadly calm. Red X stood as straight as he could. "Something you'll regret." Red X glanced at Robin. "He's been drugged." Slade said. X considered lighting him on fire. "Get the fuck out." He snapped instead. He could practically hear Slade smirking behind his mask. "If you wish." Slade brushed past X and out the door. Red X started to follow him, but was stopped by a noise from the bed. "Mmhhww." Red X looked over his shoulder at Robin. He'd turned over and was facing the window. X's anger faded. "Damn it kid. Even when you're asleep, you screw with my head." He crossed back to Robin's desk and dropped the bird-a-rang back where it belonged, and instead snatching a space communicator off the desk. "Sweet dreams." He murmured, before ghosting back out the door.

Red X called Robin just hours later. The thief was out of uniform, and pacing in his apartment. Robin answered, voice bleary. "Who is this?"

"Hey kid." Robin growled at him. "Unless you are on fire or being raped, I don't give a fuck, leave me alone."

"Hey I'm trying to prevent you from getting raped!" That woke Robin up. He sat up straight in bed, pulling the covers up to his neck. "Okay, I'm listening. What are you talking about?"

"Did you ever notice Slade has a crush on you? A creepy one." Red X related the details of last night, trying, and failing, to gloss over his own intrusion. After he finished, Robin was silent. "So, he witnessed one of the biggest mistakes of my life, huh?" Robin said finally. Red X laughed. "That stung kid." He could tell by his tone and expression Robin hadn't really meant that. "It was supposed to. But you realize you basically signed your own death warrant last night, right?" Red X's face darkened, and his grip on the communicator tightened. "Someone needed to tell that creep 'hands off', might as well be me." Robin smiled, and X's heart practically cartwheeled. "Pretend you're sick and get your side-kicks out of there. I'm upgrading your security." He paused and looked more carefully at the communicator screen, glimpsing bare flesh below the covers. "Are you naked?" Robin flipped him off and cut the connection. Red X smiled. 'Guess I should go find out.'

"Okay, I found another camera, but I'm almost positive that's the last one." X dropped the device onto Robin's desk. "I can start on the locks in a bit." Robin was leaning against his doorway, arms folded. He'd made a face once or twice when Red X had dug through his closet, but hadn't said anything. Seven tiny cameras had been placed around the room, and one had given a perfect view of Robin's bed. "You know," Robin muttered. "I could just have Cyborg upgrade the security." Red X paused and looked back at Robin. "Really? Then why don't you?" He was back in uniform, and Robin hated how good it looked on him. He looked away. "You were already coming over." Red X crossed to him. He reached out and took Robin's chin in one gloved hand. "You could've called me back and told me to fuck off." He tugged his own mask off and flicked a stray stand of hair out of his eyes. "I think you wanted me to do it." Robin's knees went weak for a second. "Yeah. Right." That didn't come out half as sarcastic as he'd wanted. Red X's thumb caressed Robin's mouth. "You said your friends won't be back for three hours or so, right?"

"Yeah. So?"

"So. Upgrading the doors will only take me one." He smirked, his tone suggestive. "And we are all alone." Behind his mask, Robin's eye lids fluttered. "In that case, go upgrade the doors. And then…" He smiled. "Then?" X pressed closer, excitement glittering in his eyes. "And then fuck off." X blinked, and then blew out a sigh. "Cold kid. Real cold." He released Robin's chin and stepped by him into the hallway. Robin had no doubt he knew exactly where to go. Robin fidgeted for a second, glancing around his room. He recalled the feel of X's fingers on his skin. He thought the way X tugged his hair and nipped his mouth. He turned and followed the thief. "Red X wait." X turned and smiled. "Not in the mood to be alone?" Robin looked X up and down, letting his eyes linger. "Go back to my room."

"Huh?"

"Take off the suit." Lust flashed back into Red X's eyes. "Knew you'd come around kid." He reached out and ruffled Robin's hair as he walked past. Robin flushed slightly. He loved it when X called him 'kid'. Not that he'd ever admit it. He turned and followed X back into his bed room. The thief had already shed most of his uniform and was lounging on Robin bed. "I'm just being polite and saying thank you." Robin informed him, launching himself on top of the other teenager.

'Note to self. Give Robin a reason to thank you more often.' Red X was currently tangled in Robin's sheets with boy wonder asleep on his chest. He shook Robin slightly. "Hey, kid, I'm gonna go upgrade your locks, okay?" Robin mumbled something and nodded sleepily. God he was precious. Red X gave him a quick kiss on the mouth before pulling on his clothes. He stretched and made his way to the tower control room. He dropped into a chair at the central console and scanned the screens. "Heh. That's cute." He was in two minutes later. "Cyborg, Cyborg, Cyborg. Either you're getting dumber or I'm-" An image on the screen to his far left caught his eyes. Beast boy had wandered in through the front door. "Fuck." Red X muttered. "Oh fuck. Oh FUCK!" He shot out of his seat and bolted back to Robin's room. "Kid wake the fuck up!" Robin sat up, yawning. "One of the idiots came back early!" He hissed. Robin took a second to process that. "Oh, shit. Uh, go work on the locks. I'll distract them." He snagged his clothes off the floor. "Who is it?"

"Beast boy."

"This'll be easy." Robin clicked his belt into place and walked past X. The whole time he was working, X kept one eye on the screen displaying the living room. It was easy to keep BB in the living room. He did seem to notice something was different, but the screens didn't have sound, so X couldn't tell if he was suspicious or not. X finished well over an hour later. The presence of another Titan made him nervous, and he kept making mistakes. He finally finished his task, cursing, and snuck out of the tower his usual way.


	3. Chapter 3

"Okay, is THIS your superpower? Being kidnapped?" Red X demanded, shifting Cori in his arms. The girl was completely red and totally silent. This time, she'd managed to sprain her ankle while they were rescuing her. "You must all be pretty sick of me." The girl muttered. Red X sighed. "No, we're not sick of you, doll. We're sick of these freaks grabbing you up every other week." He shifted her again. "Can one of you take her for a while?" He paused while Starfire lifted the short blonde out of his arms. Robin silently thanked god. He didn't get jealous a lot, but lately he'd started thinking of Red X as 'his', and watching Red X cradle a pretty girl grated on his nerves. Cori looked over Starfire's shoulder at Robin and cocked her head. "Robin? You okay?" He forced his frown away. "Yeah, I'm fine Cori."

"Cause you look like you're gonna beat someone with a pool que." Robin smiled, despite his irritation. "If I'm beating anyone with a pool que, it'll be Control Freak. What's he want with you? What do any of them want with you?" Cori shrugged. "I'm just lucky like that." Cyborg halted ahead of them. "Not you!" He snapped. Robin stepped around Starfire. Mad Mod was blocking the hallway. "Just give me the girl, alright duckies?"

"How about, you go burn in Hell instead?" Cori looked over MM's head. "Uh guys?" Robin drew his bo staff. Red X fell into place beside him. "Not now doll."

"But guys!"

"What's big deal with her?" Beast boy demanded. The Brit leaned on his cane, sneering. "You really don't know?"

"No, now tell us before me make you!" Raven threatened. "GUYS!" Cori shrieked, right before a platoon of Marines swarmed into view. "TAKE DOWN THE LIMEY!"

"KEEP THE GIRL ALIVE!"

"COME ON BOYS LETS WRAP THIS UP!" About ten of them fell onto Mad Mod, while an officer stepped up to the Titans. "Who's in charge here?" He demanded, glowering. Robin stepped up. "I am. What the hell is this about?"

"That's none of your concern." He noticed Starfire holding Cori. "Ms. Brandimore, are you injured?"

"Just twisted my ankle Captain."

"Young lady, please hand her over." He barked over his shoulder. "Finn, Parker! Front and center!" Two young men hurried over. "Take her!" The Captain pointed to Cori. They both bundled Cori out of Starfire's arms and carried her off. "Hey! I wanna stay with the Titans!" Cori objected. "Pipe down blondie." The one called Finn snapped. The Captain turned back to them. "Your country thanks you. Brandimore is very important to national security."

"National security?" Red X repeated.

"I've already told you too much. If she disappears again, we'll be in touch." He turned on his heel, seized Mad Mod by the collar and dragged him off. The other Marines marched after him. "Okay, the fuck was that about?" Beast boy shouted.

"Come on Cori, will you just tell me?"

"I will go to prison Xavier. And not the nice, rich girl prison. Heroin choked, murder filled, ghetto kid prison." Red X rolled his eyes and kept following her. "I thought we were friends, doll?" Cori continued picking through the bookshelves. "We are friends, X. Just not good enough friends for me to risk getting sent to Gitmo because you want a question answered." Her phone rang. "Hang on a second." She answered. "Kristi! Yeah, I know. Uh, right now, actually. Calm down! Yes, a bit of a pretty boy." Red X arched an eyebrow. "Are you talking about me?" Cori waved him off. "He's a sweetie! NO! He's sweet and taken. Who do you think?' Cori held the phone away from her ear. A long EEEEEEEEEEEEE, sounded from it. Cori grimaced, and then brought the phone back to her ear. "You done squeeing? Good." The bell over the door chimed. Several people gasped and an employee dropped the stack of books he'd been moving and fled. "Gotta go boss!" He yelped as he passed Cori and X. "Boss?" X repeated. "Spread out." A voice shouted. "Adonis, check over there. Control Freak, look in the back." Red X froze. "Rancid?" Cori's face darkened. "Not. In my. FUCKING. Store. No way. Kristi, need to call ya back. Talk to X." She shoved the phone in his hand, before storming around the shelf. "Her store?"

"Yep. She owns October Books." Red X jumped at looked at the phone. He pressed the cell to his ear. "Uh, hi?" A piece of furniture shattered and Adonis yelped. "Dude, she's really strong!"

"Don't worry about Cori." The voice on the line injected. "I'm Kristi."

"Xavier. She owns this place?"

"The shop, the art gallery on Seventh and Broadwalk, and a free clinic on Pacific street."

"WHAT?" The front window smashed. "Rancid! You'll pay for that!" Cori screamed.

"Cori's like, really rich. You didn't know that?"

"Huh? No, I didn't, I should-" Control Freak came scrambling around the far end of the aisle. "That girl is insane!" He shoved Red X aside and fled out the back door. "Never mind. Okay, the money explains the kidnapping, but do you know why the government is so interested in her?" Maybe Kristi knew something. "Hey, Xavier, is that important right now?"

"What?" Cori stormed into the aisle, knocked a few books off the shelf, and grabbed something. "This store is like a sacred fucking temple to me!" She ran off again. "I heard from Cori that your little boyfriend is pissed off at you?"

"She told you that? She said she wouldn't tell anyone!"

"You have to realize, me, Robert, Jevona, and Kendra basically get told everything."

"Even if it's about me and Rob—my boyfriend?"

"Firstly, I know who you guys are. Secondly, especially if it's about you two." Red X started to cuss Cori out when one of the shelves tipped over. Adonis lay unconscious on top of the mess. Red X leaned around the still standing shelves. Johnny Rancid, sporting a black eye, was backing away from an extremely angry Cori. "Look squirt, all I want is the stone!"

"Well you aren't getting it! Now get the hell out of my store!" Rancid glanced around and spotted X. "Who the fuck are you?"

"No one." Red X ducked back around the shelf. "Yeah yeah." He said into the phone. "I kinda,…I tried to take his mask off. While he was sleeping. Now, he won't talk to me." Kristi cursed in what sounded like Portuguese. "Why would you do a thing like that?"

"Hey! He's seen my face, I know his name, what's big deal? I figured, if I saw his face I'd tell him my name. Keep us even."

"He doesn't know your name yet? Even Cori knows your name!"

"Yeah yeah, long fucking story about that." There was a long, resounding thwack and Rancid collapsed, unconscious. "That'll learn you!" Cori shouted. She wandered back around. "Hey Xavier. Sorry about that."

Robin had been avoiding his team all day. He'd walked into his room to discover Raven standing there, holding a pair of Red X's boots. She'd looked up at him, eyes frozen, questioning. "Robin?" He'd turned and bolted. But now, Raven had him cornered. "Robin, I just want the truth." And he'd spilled everything. From Red X's initial offer of sex back in the summer, to the first time they'd actually been physical, to when it became regular, up to the fight two nights ago. "AND NOW, I feel like I completely over-reacted but I don't know how to tell him I'm sorry, and I'm afraid I just screwed this up beyond all repair!" Robin cradled his head in his hands. "Raven, I know you probably want to kill me right now, but, you need to understand, I have an excuse."

"What is it?"

"He's insanely hot." Raven smiled slightly, her equivalent of collapsing on the floor laughing. "Really? How insanely hot?"

"Core of the sun." Raven sighed. "I suppose, I can't really blame you for who you fall in love with." Robin chocked on his own breath. "I am not-!"

"You're not what? In love with him? Addicted to him? Crazy about him? Robin, if you don't, why are you so worked up about a fight?" Robin gaped at her. "Be-because! Just because I don't want to stop sleeping with him doesn't mean-"

"You could get virtually anyone you wanted, no issue."

"Well, I like him and-"

"Robin, I feed off emotions. Quit protesting; I can practically smell it on you." Robin shut up. Raven's face softened. "If it helps, I'm fairly certain he feels the same way." Robin looked at her, curious. "Last time we fought him as a team." She elaborated. "When Rancid showed up and clocked you in the head with that wrench? You were unconscious, but I've never seen Red X so blindly furious. I had no idea what exactly was going on, but I knew one thing. Red X thinks of you as his to protect." Raven smiled again. "He actually said that. 'Back off. He's mine. Touch him again and I will kill you!' Needless to say, we were,…puzzled." Robin flushed. "Robin, talk to him. If I'm right about how he feels, he doesn't want this fight any more than you do."


	4. Chapter 4

Red X rolled his eyes at Kristi's latest text. She'd been berating him all day and the previous night. That only that, but she was asking pretty personal questions.

"Hey. So. I need to ask you about how you Fell in Love with Robbie. Very Very crucial info and I only got the Abridged version from Cori n all. Was it Love at first sight? Are you originally gay? or Just for Robbie?"

He'd texted back, 'I AM NOT IN LOVE WITH HIM.'

The response?

" I bet you sneak into his room almost every night hoping he'll play nice and let you get all touchy feely!"

He ignored that. Mostly because it was true. Two minutes later…

"Does Rob Moan? I always thought he'd be a moaner. You know since he's all Anal n stuff when he's captain and no one knows of any other hobbies than things related to work."

If there was one thing Red X did NOT do, it was blush, but that definitely turned him red. (haha.)

'…No. He's….quiet. Except for cursing.'

"Why the fuck did I just tell her that? Damn it Cori, I hate your friends." Cori had just smiled at him and continued cleaning her shop.

'Oh and one more thing. How many times have you and Robbie gotten "funky" lately?'

"WHY WOULD SHE WANT TO KNOW THAT?"

"Because she's Kristi?"

"…Do you want to know that?"

"…I won't object if you told me. In detail. With diagrams?"

"You're gross, doll."

"Oh well go ahead and block me from texting you, I'm surprised you haven't already. Actually! wait Can I use some of this for the comic I've been working on lately? Its about a theif and a truancy? officer falling in love, but they're both men and find it awkward n stuff. But the theif guy always gets in more trouble to see TO again."

'Don't make my life a comic!'

"Okay, I need to go talk to Robin. I miss the stupid midget."

"Wait!" Cori ran upstairs to the apartment over the store before returning with a tupperware container. "Chicken stir fry, you're too skinny."

"And you're worse than a mom."

"I love you too. Good luck." Xavier pulled his hood up and left the brightly lit shop into the drizzling rain outside.

Cori waved her friend off and cranked up her radio. Humming, the blonde went back to straightening up shelves and re stocking books. Cori scooped up her ledger and padded into the back room. She dropped into her desk chair and sighed heavily. "Sometimes I wonder if it's really worth it." She glanced at several framed photos opposite her desk. People in the waiting room of the clinic, her clinic. The gallery on the day it opened. The X ray of her heart, with a sparkling red light, directly in the center. "Heh. Totally worth it." The door chimed. "We're closed!" She shouted, staring down at the ledger. "Who the hell was scribbling notes in this thing?" Heavy footsteps reached her ears. Cori paused, lifting her eyes to the doorway. The lights outside her office were all off. "Hello?" No answer. She slowly reached for her phone and lifted it to her ear. No dial tone. "HELLO?" Still no answer. She glanced back down at the ledger and squinted at the message printed in the margins. I SEE YOU. "Hello Corinne."

"Gha!" She stood up so fast that her chair fell over. "You? What, what do YOU want?" Slade remained in the doorway, hands behind his back, single eye narrowed. "I want the Philosopher's stone." Cori was over the desk and around his arm like a bullet from a gun. Slade sighed. "They always run."

The two of them stood across from each other, tense and silent. "Look Robin-

"X, I didn't mean-" They fell silent again. "Uh, you go." Robin muttered. X held his mask in his hands, staring at it. "I shouldn't have tried to take off your mask while you were sleeping. That was, stupid of me."

"And I shouldn't have called you an inconsiderate pig and kicked you out without giving you your shoes back."

"Uh, yeah. That kinda stung, kid." Red X smiled a little. "So,…we good?" Robin kicked at the floor a little. "If, you want to be good, I'm good." X stepped closer and ran his fingers through Robin's hair. "My name is-" Robin clapped a hand over X's mouth. "I actually don't care." X pushed his hand away. "That's a lie."

"Make up sex to change the subject?"

"I'm game." He pushed Robin back on to his bed and unclicked his belt. Then his stupid, traitorous phone buzzed. "If that's Kristi I'll shoot somebody." Robin stretched out on his mattress and waited. Red X grabbed his phone and unlocked the screen. "What the hell?"

'Tell me EVERYTHING YOU CAN ABOUT SLADE ASAP!'

Red X frowned and showed Robin the message. Robin propped himself up on his elbows and blew a lock of hair out of his eyes. "Slade? What does he have to do with anything?"

'In the middle of something. Why?'

'Don't ask why, Just text you fool! FAST! Cori's Gone again! My GPS Tracker Is malfunctioning And Telling me she's traveling to world by teleporting to china then brazil then canada etc. SLADE HAS A SCRAMBLER ON HER'

Red X felt his eye twitch. "That's it. He's going die. Permanently." He shoved the phone into Robin's hand. Robin scanned the message. His face darkened. "X, I think it's time you met my friends." Robin seized X's hand and dragged him down the hall. "Don't bother with your mask." He towed X into the living room. "Guys, X. X, guys. We're having sex, deal with it. Cori got kidnapped by Slade and he jacked up her GPS tracker. We should get a call from the NSA in 3..2..1." The video phone switched on, and a pissed off Federal Agent's face filled the screen. "Brandimore! Gone! Find her!"


	5. Chapter 5

"I just don't understand what any of you are talking about." Cori repeated for the millionth time. "The philosopher's stone? I don't know anything about alchemy! Or philosophers! And not that much about stones, come to think of it." Slade was losing patience. "You have the philosopher's stone. You have been using it to turn many items into gold, which you then sell. You have also been helping fund government research, which is why they're keeping out of this."

"Can I go home?"

"No. Not until you give me the stone. My associates are searching your store, your clinic, and your gallery. They are prepared to search your home and the homes of your friends and family." Cori raised her eyebrows. "Fine. I've got it. Go ahead and search everywhere I've ever been, you'll never find it."

"I'll find it."

"Bring it on." She turned to the side in her chair and huffed. Slade considered punching her in the throat. Johnny Rancid walked back in. "Hey squirt. You still alive? Boss, I ripped that clinic apart. I knocked holes in the walls, ripped up the carpeting, everything. Stone ain't there." They looked at Cori, who snorted. "I'd be stupid to keep it in the clinic. There isn't any decent place to hide it there!" Control Freak meekly stepped into the room. "I searched her book store. It's not there."

"In my store? I live over that store! I might as well keep it in my pocket!" A communicator on a nearby table buzzed. Slade hit a button. "What is it Mammoth?"

"Look, we just finished with her gallery. Nothing here." Slade muttered something. He cast a look back at Cori. "Rancid? Break her nose." Cori shrank down in her chair. "Where the hell are the Titans when you need them?"

Red X kept his arms around Robin's waist and his chin on his shoulder. Robin was leading them to the last place Slade had been known to be hiding out. Cyborg had Beast boy in the T-car, Raven and Starfire flew overhead, and Red X was on the R-cycle with Robin. None of them mentioned the fact that most likely, Slade was nowhere near his old base. No one mentioned the fact that Cori, small, weak, and prone to anxious meltdowns, was trapped with Slade, big, strong, and prone to homicidal rage. Robin felt Red X tighten his hold around his waist. Robin took grim comfort in the fact that now, at least, they knew why Cori was so interesting to every two bit villain in the city. The philosopher's stone. The other side of that coin, however, was why no one could ever find it. Cori didn't have the stone; Cori was the stone. The agent who had called them finally caved and explained the whole mess. Several months before, Cori had developed a sort of Midas touch. She could turn objects into pure gold with a single touch. Doctors, biologists, and even geologists were baffled, until someone gave her a full body scan. Instead of a human heart, she had a fist sized glittering ruby in her chest cavity. "Philosopher's stone? Heh. That's a myth. We refer to it as 'Crystal Syndrome.' But that's beside the point. Ms. Brandimore is extremely important to us. We need her back. We need that stone back!" Robin gritted his teeth. Who gave a damn about the stone? He was just worried about what would happen if anyone figured out where it really was.

Cori was currently hanging by her hands from a skinny pipe thirty feet over a concrete floor. "This won't make me tell you anything!" She shouted. No one answered. "Hello? Who's watching me?" Silence. "Guys? Can I come down?" Completely alone. "Oh fuck."

"Face it kid, she's not here. Nobody is." Red X kicked at a discarded piece of furniture. "Well where is she then?" Cyborg demanded. "I don't know. I have no idea." Robin stared around aimlessly. "Where do you take someone to convince them to tell you where they're hiding the Philosopher's stone?"

"Greetings Titans!" Control Freak leapt into view and posed dramatically. The Titans elected to ignore him. "How do we even know she's still in the city? She could be in any corner of the county by now!"

"Maybe she's already—you know. The D word?"

"Don't even think that!"

"Hey Titans! Titans! TITANS! HEY! I KNOW WHERE THE GIRL IS!" That got their attention. Red X was across the room, quick as a spider. He seized Control Freak by the hair and yanked. "Where. Is. SHE?"

"Ow ow ow! Hey, come on, I'm gonna tell you!" Red X snarled. "You better."

"What are you doing hanging with the Titans anyway?"

"One of them happens to be my boyfriend. Tell me where Cori is!"

"Slade's got her in an empty office building downtown, in the loading dock. He's pretty pissed she won't say where the stone is." Robin stepped by closer to him. "How pissed?" He demanded. "Like, 'leave her hanging from a ceiling pipe and threatening to let her drop to her death' pissed." Raven swore. "Show us." Red X ordered. "Alright, alright! Come on."

"Finally!" Cori glared past her feet down at Jinx. "Can I get down from here now?" Jinx ignored her. "Hey! My arms are getting tired!" Jinx tucked a heavy book under one arm and climbed up the ladder attached to a platform several feet from where Cori dangled. "Oh, thanks. I swear, I'm gonna drop any-" Jinx, on the platform, held the book open to her. The page displayed a rough diagram of the human body, with a line indicating the heart. The entry was titled, 'The Human Vessel.' Cori gulped. "Alchemists in the 12th century decided the stone was too powerful to be wielded by more than one person. They gave the stone limited thought capabilities, allowing the stone to select one person in each generation to carry it. They then destroyed all documents detailing how to create the stone. At least, that's one theory. I never believed it. Not until CF discovered that scan in your office, anyway." Cori just stared at her. "Guess we have no choice then. Slade's fetching a doctor. We'll put you under. You won't feel a thing." Jinx clicked her fingers and vanished in a pillar of shadow. Her parting words hung in the air. "Try not to die until we get back."


	6. Chapter 6

Cori stared up at the ceiling of the sterilized room. Slade appeared, standing over her.

"This is Doctor Prilar. He's the surgeon who'll be removing the stone." A scared man in his late forties leaned over Cori on the other side of the table. "This is completely unsafe and totally immoral!" He squeaked, terror in his eyes. Cori smirked, faking bravado. "Go ahead. The minute you cut out my heart, I'll die, and the stone will vanish and move onto the next lucky cosmic lottery winner." Slade narrowed his eye at her. "You think I don't know that? There is, however, a loophole. Something the early Alchemists didn't anticipate. The stone cannot move onto a new vessel while the current vessel lives. If there's a way to keep you alive without the stone, it won't vanish."

"Well then how are you going to do that, huh? HUH?" That's when she spotted the cooler. It was resting on a metal counter at the far end of the room. The lid was bright red and the American Red Cross symbol was painted on its side. "What's that?"

"Your new heart." It clicked. A heart transplant. Of course. "That's clever. Very clever. Wow. Thanks for the new heart, I guess." The wheels in her head turned. Eight blocks from this office building was a suspension bridge. The waters below had to be at least ten below zero that night. The stone would be with its next rightful owner by the following sunrise. "Don't even think about it." Slade said sharply. "Think about what?"

"Taking the martyr's exit." He showed her a glass syringe, loaded with pulsing red liquid. "Corinne, how much do you know about Xenothium?"

"Uh, it powers the Red X suit, it's highly unstable, extremely valuable, that's about it."

"What about its liquid form?"

"Nothing."

"When injected directly into the frontal lobe, it will induce near instantaneous brain death." Cori's eyes grew wide. "You wouldn't!"

"Oh, Corinne. I most certainly would."

The Titans, with Control Freak leading the way, crept around the edge of the building. "Robin." Red X whispered. "Not now." Robin hissed back, still half convinced this was a trap. "It's important!"

"More important than this?"

"Yes!" Robin glared at him. "Tell me later!"

"I might not have a chance later!"

"Don't talk like that."

"I'm preparing for the worst here!" Robin blew out a sigh. They were a step or two behind the rest of the group. "Fine. Make it quick."

"My name is Xavier Maxwell."

"Xenothium? Into her brain? Are you completely insane?" Slade's merry band of misfit murderers were on the verge of mutiny. "I'm a father! And you expect me to condone this!" Killer Moth shouted, on his feet at the other end of the table. "No way! No fucking way! I'm out!" Rancid got up and left. "Something is wrong with you." Mad mod, fresh out of federal prison, muttered. Slade sighed. "If we let her live, she'll take her own life and send the stone to its next vessel. This is the only way."

"I have another solution." Professor Chang, until that moment, had not said a word one way or another. "Liquid Xenothium to the frontal lobe may kill the brain entirely, but the same element injected into the Hippocampus will cause retrograde amnesia. She will remember nothing of her life. We dump her in a psych ward in some distant corner of the world under an assumed name, and she never bothers us again. Come now Slade, what really is the difference?" Slade seemed to mull that over for a moment. "I have no objection." He finally conceded. He hit an intercom switch. "Dr. Prilar, slight change of plans." No answer. "Dr. Prilar?" The OR was empty. No Cori.

The Titans' sneaking was interrupted by Johnny Rancid striding purposefully past them, a yawning Cori in tow.

"Pick up the pace squirt."

"Tired!"

"That's because of the morphine."

"Rancid!"

"What birdboy? I'm busy."

"Where are you taking her?"

"Far away from this hell hole." Robin ran after him and grabbed the biker's arm. "You're helping her?"

"Turning her into a vegetable was not part of the deal." He gave them the short version of the plan. "Anyway, I need to get her the fuck out of here before-"

"You are a complete moron." Rancid sighed, looking over his shoulder at the crowd of pissed criminals behind him. "Ya see what ya do, Robin? Ya see what ya do?"

Rancid shoved Cori out of the way. The girl was starting to wake up, and she gazed around. "What's going on?"

"Nothing doll." Red X passed her off to Cyborg, who in turn handed her off to Starfire. Rancid held up his hands and stepped forward. "Look, I want access to unlimited gold, silver, and eternal life just as much as you guys. But turning her into an empty headed husk is a little extreme." Slade nodded once. "Yes. Extreme. Katarou?" A shadowy figure flashed past Slade, and a sharp crack split the air. Johnny's head twisted at a disturbing angle, and the biker dropped to the ground. "This was not a time to emulate Terra." Slade said shortly, as Katarou walked proudly back into the crowd. It was like the world stopped for a few seconds. Someone had just been murdered in cold blood, and it didn't seem anyone was prepared for it. Robin tightened his hold on his bo staff. "That was a mistake." He hissed. Red X stepped up beside him. He spotted Killer Moth and few others quietly slipping out of the mob of gold seekers. "X. Take Cori and go. We can hold them off." Robin ordered. "Like hell. I go where you go."

"Will you shut up, barf brains?" Gizmo was standing, arms crossed, just to the groups' left. Jinx, See-More, Mammoth, and Private Hive had followed. "What are you guys-" Beast boy started, before Mad Mod strode past Slade and joined the other side. "You too?" Raven asked. Adonis stomped after him. "Rancid was a friend." He snapped over his shoulder. Control Freak was still standing behind the Titans, quacking in his boots. "I'm good where I am." He squeaked. meekly crossed no man's land to stand beside the Titans. Cori had been mostly silent since Johnny was killed, but piped up suddenly. "This is gonna be hilarious." Slade glanced at the significantly smaller group behind him, and then back at the much larger group in front of him. "So be it."

It was a little difficult to tell the 'good' guys from the 'bad' guys. And it didn't help that a few people switched sides part way through, and others took off entirely. It was even more of a hassle to explain who was on whose side when the Marines finally showed up. But at least the arrival of government trained, heavily armed combat veterans wrapped things up a little quicker. Slade vanished as always, Rancid was bundled up in a body bag, and nearly everyone besides the Titans and X was hauled off to jail, with the hope that the courts would sort them out. Robin made a mental note to put in a good word for the ones that had taken a stand on Cori's behalf. Cori herself was sitting in the back of a sleek black car with a few FBI agents. She had her head in her hands and hadn't said a word since the battle ended. As Robin watched, Raven walked over and bent down by the window, talking to the guilt ridden teen. Robin decided to leave her alone. Red X was leaning against the side of the building, watching a cop try to get Mammoth into a squad car. "So, Xavier, huh?" X didn't look at him. "Yeah."

"I like it." Red X still didn't look at him. "Are you pissed at me?"

"No. Why would I be?"

"I have no idea." Red X blew out a sigh, before tugging his mask off. "I told you my name. You've seen my face. Kid, I just wanna see what you look like. I already know your name, what's the big deal?" Robin was silent. "Xavier, I just-"

"If you don't trust me enough to show me your face, this isn't going to work." Robin blinked behind his mask. "And yes, that is an ultimatum." Robin reached out and caressed X's arm. "Look at me." He whispered. The thief did, finally. Robin took a deep breath, glanced around just to be safe, and slowly removed his own mask. Bright, intelligent blue eyes met mismatched ones. Xavier's shock faded, and he grabbed his boyfriend by the shoulders and gave him a back breaking kiss. "See? Was that so hard?" He murmured against Robin's mouth. Robin smiled and touched their foreheads together. "Actually…no. It wasn't." Xavier pulled Robin up against his chest. "Knew you'd come around, kid."

"I always do."


	7. Epilouge

Robin hated funerals. He especially hated the funerals of friends. Corinne Brandimore had been out at sea in a canoe three days earlier and had drowned in a freak accident. Her body was yet to be recovered. He sighed heavily and tossed a yellow rose onto the empty casket resting in the earth. Maybe it was for the best. Just because they'd won for now didn't mean they'd won for good. The stone would have made her a target for the rest of her days. A life on the run wasn't a life at all. A sniffling girl in a flowing purple skirt came and stood next to him. "Hey." She hiccupped. "I'm Kristi." Her face was blotchy and wet. "Her friend from Brazil?" The brunette nodded glumly. "She'd be really happy you came, ya know." The actual funeral had ended about ten minutes ago, and most had already left for the wake, leaving the graveyard mostly empty.

"Of course I came." He looked around. Where the hell had Xavier gone? "Robin!" Speak of the devil. Red X, out of uniform in a black suit, jogged down the hill to meet them. "Hey Kristi. How you holding up?" Kristi sniffed loudly in response. "Decent. You?"

"A little better now."

"Why?"

"Oh, you guys didn't hear? My sister got kicked out of the latest school she got sent to." He turned and called back up the hill. "Hey Mallory!" A short, slender figure appeared at the top of the hill and started picking her way past the gravestones down to them. Robin's eyes widened. He knew that walk. Apparently, Kristi knew it too, because she let out a strangled half scream and bolted up the hill to meet the girl. Robin raised an eyebrow at X. "Your sister, huh?"

"Yep. Twin sister, Mallory Renee Maxwell. She's always been a bit of a trouble maker, so my parents have been sending her to random schools since, like, fourth grade. Latest was in Germany. She lit the gym on fire. My parents do not know yet."

"Great backstory."

"Her work."

"I guessed." Kristi was embracing the young woman and jumping up and down. The other was laughing. "Hair dyed black, a scar added to her cheek, and the best colored contacts money can buy."

"Need paperwork?"

"Already taken care of."

"You always think of everything."

'Mallory' and Kristi finally got to the grave side. "Poor girl." 'Mallory' said, patting the temporary headstone. "I thought she could swim?"

"Let's not mock the dead, sis." Xavier commented. Mallory laughed. "She'd want to be mocked." She glanced down at the casket. "Night squirt." Red X slipped his hand into Robin's. "Let's let the girls talk, okay? See you at home, sis." Robin and X headed for the gates. "You're a good person, you know that?" Robin mentioned. "Hey, this can be interpreted as selfish! The person controlling the Philosopher's stone now owes me a lifetime of favors!" Robin rolled his eyes. "Yeah, right."


End file.
